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Through
The Eyes Of Sonny Okogwu
By
Edwin Madunagu
culled from GUARDIAN, August 3,
2006
Chief Sonny Okogwu, the Delta
State-born Kaduna-based businessman, is very much like Chief Arthur Nzeribe,
except that the former is not a professional politician. Or rather, he is
not an "electoral politician" like Nzeribe. But he is a leading member of
the political class - the class of mainstream or establishment politicians.
Okogwu has several attributes in common with Nzeribe, but I am focusing here
on Okogwu's "outspokenness" as an Establishment politician. He speaks freely
and openly on axioms of power (in the sense of Nicolo Machiavelli) and in
doing this, often reveals what can be called "class secrets".
As an outsider, I can afford
to be outspoken on high-profile intrigues and struggles within and
between, the ruling blocs. But a leading Establishment politician would
be expected to stop short of revealing the secrets that belong to the
ruling classes as a whole. This rule is however not obeyed by some
politicians and "power brokers" (to use Okogwu's terms). Nzeribe and
Okogwu are two such politicians. Their outspokenness is often an
embarrassment to other Establishment politicians. But the polity as a
whole benefits. This type of "outspokenness" - which must also be
critically assessed - often saves us from chasing shadows.
I shall illustrate with
an incident - involving Chief Nzeribe - during General Babangida's
transition. The year was 1991 or 1992. Chief Nzeribe had contested
the presidential primaries of the Social Democratic Party (SDP)
whose results were rejected by all the contestants except one, the
winner. Nzeribe was one of the losers. Of all the arguments advanced
by Nzeribe for rejecting the result of the primaries the one that
annoyed him most was that in rigging the election, some of the
contestants did not respect their opponents' "spheres of influence".
This protocol on rigging was however disregarded by some
contestants. How could someone, an opponent come and rig in
Nzeribe's backyard. And this angered Nzeribe more than any other
electoral malpractice. Other party leaders - winners and losers
alike - were thoroughly embarrassed not by what happened but by what
Nzeribe said - not in a party caucus, but openly in the public. That
is one attribute Okogwu shares with Nzeribe.
I have never met
Chief Sonny Okogwu; not have I ever seen him. But I can guess
his material circumstances and some of his personal tastes -
from what I have read and seen. He is the immediate elder
brother of General Ibrahim Babangida's wife. He is said to be a
"multi-billionaire aviation magnate" and to be living in a
"famous ship house" in Kaduna. Although it has not been credibly
suggested that Okogwu's stupendous wealth is attributable to his
relationship with General Babangida, I would have been shocked
if he was not wealthy. When next I visit Kaduna I would love to
see his house, although I can guess what it looks like - taking
a cue from the hotel said to be owned by him in Asaba, capital
of his home state, the Delta State.
The main concern
of this piece is Sonny Okogwu's "outspokenness" in the
Establishment politics of Nigeria. I am basing my brief
survey on recent interviews with two media organisations:
The Week magazine, July 10, 2006 and Sunday Independent,
July 16, 2006. I shall proceed by extracting some
pronouncements from the two interviews and providing
commentaries where necessary - for most of Okogwu's
pronouncements are so clear in contents and implications
that commentaries would only debase them.
We may start
with the newsmagazine. In it Okogwu recalled that he was
the first person to openly state publicly, that there
was an agreement to the effect that President Obasanjo
would be in office for only one term 1999-2003.
Thereafter, he would hand over (probably) to a
Northerner. The implication here is that the often
mentioned 2003 re-endorsement of the 1999 agreement on
the movement of Nigeria's presidency, was actually an
extension of the period of validity of that agreement
from four years (1999-2003) to eight years (1999-2007).
The agreement was packaged and signed, by the "power
brokers", according to Okogwu.
Chief
Okogwu's pronouncements in the interview however,
went beyond the agreement. He made several
embarrassing "revelations". Let us do a sampling. On
the June 12, 1993 presidential election which Chief
Moshood Abiola won, but which the military regime
annulled, Okogwu said that Abiola committed a
"tactical blunder" by "sidelining" Chief Arthur
Nzeribe. The latter reacted by going to court. The
court stopped the election; and the military regime
obeyed the court order. On responsibility for the
annulment, Okogwu said: "Top Yoruba politicians,
chiefs and businessmen worked day and night to
ensure Abiola did not become president, but all is
now history". So, were Nzeribe "top Yoruba
politicians", and General Babangida playing their
parts in a common strategy?
On
the aftermath of the collapse of the
"third-term" agenda, Okogwu said: "You people
were jubilating when the National Assembly
killed or rather threw out the draft
constitution that will elongate Obasanjo's term
in office. The man (Obasanjo) is angry more than
ever before. He is now wild and ready to fight.
The so-called issue of asking PDP governors to
choose a presidential aspirant is just a play to
cause problem in PDP, the ruling party and we
have in good authority that Obasanjo will not
hand over next year. He will try to cause
problems all over the country to stay in power.
But, I can assure you, he will be pushed out and
Atiku will head an interim government that will
hand over to IBB (General Babangida) in 2008".
No comment is necessary.
On the current political status of General
Babangida: "Yes, I told you earlier Obasanjo
and IBB are still very close, Yes, IBB
deputises for Obasanjo whenever Obasanjo is
outside the country, yes IBB still occupies
some chalet in the Villa, but the issue is
Babangida is a phenomenon, you need him more
than he needs you". On the threat of
disqualification of Babangida: "Ribadu
cannot stop Atiku, Buhari, IBB from
contesting the presidency. Ribadu should be
careful. Let him see what is happening to
Al-Mustapha. If Atiku becomes president
tomorrow where will he run to?" On the
stature of Obasanjo's ministers and
advisers: "This government is in a mess.
Some people who claimed to be super
advisers, super minister, and super
chairman, Board of Trustees have failed the
President, their so-called intelligence have
failed Obasanjo, we need the likes of Fani
Kayode to scare enemies of the President, I
commend the Senate for clearing him". No
comment.
We may now go to the second publication,
the lead front page story in the Sunday
Independent of July 16, 2006. The story
titled, Okogwu to South-South: stage a
coup if you want presidency, appears
like an exclusive interview with one of
the paper's reporters in Kaduna. Chief
Okogwu felt that his compatriots in the
South-South geopolitical zone who are
not agitating for the presidency in 2007
are, to say the least, unreasonable. He
was surprised that they did not realise
that it was not their turn. In any case,
he told the newspaper, "If we from the
South-South had wanted to have a
president, we should have done so by
going through a coup or were there no
Generals in the zone to stage a coup?"
He angrily re-iterated that it was the
turn of the North to produce the
President in 2007, according to a
standing agreement.
It is either Okogwu does not believe
in the geopolitical division of the
country into six zones, including
the South-South zone, or he does not
think this division should have
anything to do with the distribution
of federal political power which he
said should rotate between the
North, the East and the West. These
were the pre-1963 political units
into which the country was divided.
He excluded the old Mid-West which
was created in 1963. His words: "We
from the South-South should ensure
that we remain as Eastern Region if
we want to capture the seat of
president. Within Eastern region, we
cannot have South-South and
South-East struggling to capture
power at the same time; it won't
work". Perhaps, not satisfied that
he had made himself clear enough,
Chief Sonny Okogwu emphasised:
"Nigeria is basically divided into
three regions: the West, the East
and the North; and since these
regions have at different times
produced a president, it is
necessary in the interest of equity
and fairness to allow the North
produce the next president".
Further down in the report, one
gets the impression that Chief
Okogwu does not include military
regimes in the analysis of the
movement of federal power (that
is, Head of State) since
independence. Furthermore, he
believes - and this appears to
contradict his attitude to
power- that Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe
(the ceremonial President) was
the person actually in power
during the First Republic
(1960-1966) and not Alhaji
Tafawa Balewa (the executive
Prime Minister): Hear him: "We
had late Nnamdi Azikiwe from the
East as the President in the
1960s; Alhaji Shehu Shagari from
1979 to 1984 from the North, and
the incumbent President, Chief
Olusegun Obasanjo from the West.
They were all democratically
elected; so, there has never
been any region that was cheated
in the history of leadership".
No comment.
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